By the time Kasenhis followed the alley to Snape's house, a pitiful trail of mud stretched behind him.
"Bloody hell, this place's municipal engineering is so awful it's practically stealing taxpayers' money!" Kasenhis grumbled through gritted teeth as he knocked on the door.
Soon, Snape opened it and ushered him inside.
"Your... behind..." Snape began awkwardly, unsure how to phrase it.
"My shoes have a rather tragic suction cup attached to the soles today, so... well."
Kasenhis helplessly spun around and turned his back to Snape, showing him the muddy wake he'd dragged in. Snape naturally pulled out his wand and cast a Cleaning Charm.
"Thanks very much."
Kasenhis casually flopped onto a sofa.
Snape's home wasn't large. Beyond the entrance lay a sitting room whose walls were lined with bookshelves. Two sofas sat neatly arranged on the floor.
The sunlight from the windows shone upon the warm-coloured leather book covers, somehow giving the room a touch of warmth.
"Coffee, tea... actually, forget it. I'll just get you a bottle of whisky. That'll suit you far better than either of those."
After rummaging around in the kitchen for a while, Snape emerged with a bottle.
"Oh! Now this is excellent!"
Kasenhis accepted the bottle and glass, poured himself a measure with a cube of ice, and took a sip to warm his stomach.
"Ah, that's better."
He leaned back comfortably into the sofa.
"By the way, I have no idea how much you earn in a year, but why do you live in such an out-of-the-way place? And the surroundings are rather run-down, aren't they?"
"I'm used to it."
Snape pointed his wand, and a flame shot into the fireplace. Unfortunately, magical fire without fuel was just fire, and after burning for a few seconds, it sputtered out.
"Let me help."
Kasenhis stood up and pulled out a pitch-black spawn egg, tossing it directly into the fireplace.
A Wither Skeleton appeared inside with a thoroughly bewildered expression.
Then Kasenhis delivered three farmer's punches in rapid succession, beating the Wither Skeleton into three lumps of coal.
"You certainly have your methods," Snape remarked as he rekindled the fire. "But why not simply take out some coal instead of going through all that trouble?"
"Because handling coal directly would dirty my hands, whereas punching a Wither Skeleton doesn't," Kasenhis explained before sitting back down and enjoying the precious warmth in the gloomy chill of Spinner's End.
Even though it was only July.
"How have things been lately? The Order of the Phoenix?" Snape asked concisely.
"Not bad. The Weasley twins have opened a shop in Diagon Alley, and the children of the Order have expanded their territory to the whole of Grimmauld Place. Since Dumbledore and Grindelwald are always strolling around and sunbathing there, the ground floor has become much more spacious."
"And you? How have things been lately?" Kasenhis asked in return.
"The Dark Lord summoned me a few times recently. He's restricted my movements to within England, so I've cancelled my holidays and several gatherings of the Potions Association and remained here. In some ways, it's peaceful. I can Apparate in and out of the house without having to worry about the mud outside."
"And next time you come here, you can simply Ender Teleport inside," Snape said calmly.
"Alright." Kasenhis gave an OK sign.
"Because letting the people outside know that a stranger has come to see me is a dangerous signal. And I don't know whether those people are ordinary vagrants or the Dark Lord's men," Snape hurriedly added.
"...No problem. Though I do think that explanation is a bit unnecessary," Kasenhis agreed with an equally unnecessary remark.
Snape chose not to address this bizarre display of negative emotional intelligence and changed the subject.
"So, what brings you here?"
"It's about the staff changes for next term at Hogwarts. Since Grindelwald has been entrusted by Dumbledore with an important mission and has become something akin to Hogwarts' security guard, the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor is now vacant."
Since he considered the position a pleasant surprise for Snape, Kasenhis deliberately kept him in suspense.
"I don't know any masters of the Dark Arts. In my eyes, their standards are mediocre at best," Snape said disdainfully.
"Exactly. Dumbledore thinks the same way. Which is why the Defence Against the Dark Arts post next term has fallen to you."
Kasenhis took out the appointment letter Dumbledore had written.
"Wow... I never expected him to agree."
Snape's voice even faltered slightly as he accepted the letter.
"You've been applying for the position for years, after all. And right now, you're the best candidate. Who's stronger than you when it comes to the Dark Arts? Voldemort, Dumbledore, and Grindelwald. But all three of them are busy," Kasenhis said casually.
"And Potions? Surely Dumbledore isn't expecting me to teach both with a Time-Turner?" Snape asked after putting away the letter.
"He found another Potions Master."
The moment those words left Kasenhis' mouth, he clearly saw a disdainful curve appear at the corner of Snape's lips. Kasenhis was certain that if the name he was about to mention didn't satisfy Snape, the man might genuinely procure a Time-Turner and work two jobs by himself.
"Slughorn. Dumbledore said he was the previous Head of Slytherin and one of your former professors."
Sure enough, the trace of disdain on Snape's face disappeared.
"He actually agreed to come out of retirement? I lost contact with him the day after rumours of the Dark Lord's return spread," Snape said in surprise.
"Dumbledore and I spent an entire night teleporting all over England before we finally dragged him out of a Muggle house."
Even now, Kasenhis sounded annoyed when he brought it up.
"Finding him doesn't surprise me. England isn't that large. What surprises me is how you managed to persuade him to return."
Clearly, that was what Snape was truly curious about.
"Well... that's a long story," Kasenhis said meaningfully.
"Then make it a short one."
Kasenhis coughed twice.
"Although he acted all noble and righteous on the surface, I reckon that since Dumbledore and I managed to find him, Voldemort could probably do the same. So in the end, he chose to return to Hogwarts. After all, with Dumbledore and Grindelwald there, it's literally the safest place in existence."
"That makes sense."
___
(～￣▽￣)～Read 12 Chapters ahead:
Patreon: Dragonel